Saturday, September 27, 2014

Paul Calandra and the Little PMO Monsters

Well last night I brought you the sad story of the Con clown Paul Calandra who has been turning Parliament into a freak show, with the help of the Speaker who claims he just can't control him.And I used this graphic to try to illustrate how Calandras's insane replies to opposition questions had turned Question Period into a madhouse...

So I'm happy to report that to illustrate tonight's story all I had to do was change the bottom right panel...

Because there was the Con clown today, in the Commons, apologizing to Tom Mulcair, and crying like a baby.A Conservative MP broke down in tears Friday as he apologized for his non-answers to opposition questions earlier in the week, responses that stirred ridicule and prompted a Speaker’s warning about the level of parliamentary debate.And I have to admit after watching that tape about ten times, especially this version with the sad violin music....

I too had tears flowing down my cheeks, and was gasping for breath, after laughing so long and so loudly.It was THAT good...

In fact, I think I'm going to go out on a limb and say I believe it was Paulie's BEST performance, to date. A mixture of pathos, false modesty, and humiliation, and almost as moving as the story about his daughter's lemonade stand.In response to a question about Senate expenses,And dare I say it? Even BETTER than the one delivered by Harper's former Parliamentary Secretary Dean Del Mastro....

Which is tribute indeed.Especially since as you know, the Deaner is now explaining the "Why? Why?" to a judge.But of course, this was the line I enjoyed the most today.“Despite what people think about kids in short pants, this was my response and I take full responsibility. I apologize to the leader of the opposition, to you, Mr. Speaker, and to all my colleagues.” Because it tells me all I need to know about Calandra, and the kids in short pants, the young fanatics who are running the PMO. Harper's chosen few...

Or as I like to call them, his little monsters.Who as EVERYBODY knows dictate every word, every Con, delivers during Question Period.And despite what Calandra said, this time was apparently no different.CBC News has learned that Calandra was put up to the responses by a senior staffer in the Prime Minister's Office. Sources tell CBC News that Calandra was handed material by Alykhan Velshi, director of issues management in the PMO, during the Conservatives' daily preparation for question period and was told to use it in his answer no matter what question was asked in the House.It WAS Alykhan Velshi, the Con operative hatched in the American Enterprise Institute, nurtured by Jason Kenney, and raised to maturity in the rarefied air of Ethical Oil...

It WAS one of the kids in short pants. Who are such ruthless fanatics that they would send out Calandra with his prepared lines, then when the shit hit the fan send him out to humiliate himself, and LIE about their involvement, like a good soldier or a good stooge. Only to humiliate himself further. But not being as smart as they think they are, didn't realize they might set off a caucus revolt.Many Conservative MPs were upset when they heard Calandra give his answers in the House. At least one wrote an angry email to the PMO saying it was wrong and had to stop.And are now being attacked so ferociously that even Dimitri Soudas has felt the need to come out and defend them...

Which tells you it's getting UGLY.And of course all of this is the LAST thing Stephen Harper needs at a time when his election campaign is gearing up to full throttle.And is leading to more rumours that he is planning his early departure.Bourque has learned that Prime Minister Stephen Harper may be planning his imminent exit strategy from the national political stage.In recent days, a number of key Conservatives in Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, and Vancouver have confided to Bourque they envision a late-winter announcement that the PM will step down, triggering a spring leadership convention to choose his successor.Which may or may not be true.But what is certain is that the Con regime is starting to unravel. It has never looked more desperate, or more vulnerable.The kids in the short pants have never looked so incompetent or out of control.And since Stephen Harper created those little monsters.As I warned from the day they were appointed.Don't be surprised if they take him down with them...

14 comments:

hi sandra...I certainly do hope the opposition demands to know why the PMO was entirely responsible for the Calandra debacle. Polls seem to suggest that Canadians were outraged by that stunt, and they should know who was responsible...

hi anon....yes I forgot to mention the bit where he put his hands in his pockets and started swivelling his hips like Elvis. That's when I first fell out of my chair laughing. It will I'm sure make its way into many internet parodies...

Now that it has been determined that Velshi was responsible for providing the details about the former NDP fundraiser’s Facebook criticism of the IDF that Calandra attempted to use to evade Mulcair’s questions, we need to establish the source of the PMO’s information. It would be particularly interesting should that source turn out to be connected to the recently reported $20 million media monitoring contracts.

Once again, these little tykes have been caught with their short pants down.

Meanwhile Harper is bringing the CETA and the China deal a few steps closer to being done deals while nothing is reported by the press besides the cheerleading. His motives and incompetence in negotiating these deals goes unaddressed. It’s time that the opposition brought out the hammer.

hi John...I think the very fact that they thought they could get away with that stunt shows their state of desperation. Velshi is in charge of issues management so the question I want to know is why was he so desperate to deflect the Iraq questions? And who is running the PMO these days? Where's Ray Novak?My guess is they're all heavily involved in election planning, and the Ship of Fools is practically on automatic pilot. And you're right their shenanigans are distracting us from their lousy trade deals, and the MSM is no help. The country is in disarray and never looked so broken....

Watched Calandra making his "apology". The tears, who knows? Some can turn them on at will. They get paid a lot of money, its called Hollywood/Bollywood/Hollywood North.

Once the shit hit the fan, the "tykes" might have decided something needed to be done. Now Calandra may have co-operated, because he could get an acting job for some of his preformances. On the other hand, it might have been tears of anger, for having to apologize. Who knows, who cares. We know the apology wasn't sincere because next week the cons will do something similar. As the line goes, its easier to apologize than ask for permission.

it maybe some of the cons are getting fed up and may show less interest than usual in "fighting' an election. They don't give the 100% effort, they may only give 85%. Some times that is enough to loose an election. this may happen, as time goes by, not even consciously. With China moving into Canada, there will be a need for "front men". There may be a lot of con M.P.s who want to take advantage of the opportunities to make more money and leave before they get kicked to the curb by the voters.

Once again we have an example of who is running the country, and its not the elected M.P.s If voters re-elected harper and his herd, they get what they deserve or get what they asked for. an end to Canadian democracy; 31 yrs of rule by China; a destruction of our environment; taken into wars we don't need; etc.

hi e.a.f....There is no doubt that the Cons have never been so restless, many of them are planning to retires, others are tired of being bossed around by the so-called kids in short pants, and others are losing their fear of Stephen Harper and are starting to worry about bering re-elected with him as leader. So while it is generalized insanity we are definitely heading in the right direction...

The problem I have is that with all fingers pointing to Velshi, none are pointing directly at #HeilHarper, and that is just plain wrong!!! We all are well aware how he micro-manages everything, and to simply lay the blame on Velshi alone, it lets the despot off the hook! (again)!! Certainly not saying Velshi isn't partly guilty, BUT, IMO, at the very least it should be "Harper-Velshi" or vice versa. There is so much chatter about #HeilHarper being so slick that nothing sticks to him - I hate to think any/all (ill) credit gets diverted.

hi cheena....yes I know what you mean, but remember Velshi is a high ranking member of the PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE, so Harper can't escape responsibility. It's just the latest bad move by the inner circle, and it is causing the Cons to fight each other. In an election year, there couldn't be a worse situation....

cheena1, yes harper is responsible but so is Velshi, because in my opinion he didn't need to do what he did. A person of integrity simply says no, find someone else to do your dirty work. I'd bet to dollars to donuts, that Velshi did it because he enjoyed it. His type love the sense of power this gives them. It feeds into their needs to project their views and grind others into the ground., so yes in my opinion Velshi is just as much to "blame" as harper. One could not carry out these types of attacks were it not for those like Velshi and without people like Velshi, people like harper wouldn't be doing what they are doing.

A dirty dictator becomes a dirty dictator because others do their work for them. So who is worse, the one who thinks things up or the one who carries out the thoughts and turns them into action.